Thursday, September 27, 2012

Game 156: Nats at Phillies

Photo by Mark Zuckerman / NATS INSIDER

The Nationals try to win one last time this season at Citizens Bank Park.

PHILADELPHIA -- There's obviously plenty at stake for the Nationals tonight in their series finale against the Phillies. First and foremost, of course, they're trying to reduce their magic number to clinch the NL East from 4 to either 3 or 2. But there are some other things to keep an eye on, as well.

From a team standpoint, the Nationals are still in a down-to-the-wire battle with the Reds for the best record in the NL. Cincinnati just stormed back in the bottom of the ninth to beat the Brewers, so the Nats will need to win tonight to maintain a 1-game lead in that department.

From a personal standpoint, Gio Gonzalez takes the mound in search of his league-leading 21st win, trying to keep some distance between himself and the Mets' R.A. Dickey (who is in line to win his 20th this afternoon against the Pirates).

Danny Espinosa, meanwhile, returns to the Nationals lineup after his surprise benching last night. He'll be part of the regular eight in action against Phillies rookie right-hander Tyler Cloyd.

Plenty of updates to come, and we'll also have Bo Porter's thoughts on becoming the Astros' new manager, so please check back...

7:07 p.m. -- We are underway. It's Fan Appreciation Night here for the Phillies final home game. Tons of empty seats.

7:13 p.m. -- And for the second straight night, Bryce Harper goes deep in the top of the first. This time he connects off Tyler Cloyd and sends the ball flying to deep right-center for his 21st home run of the season. He's now three shy of Tony Conigliaro's teenage record, and he's now got 94 runs scored. The Nats take a 1-0 lead.

7:35 p.m. -- Yikes, that was kind of a disaster of a bottom of the first for Gio Gonzalez. He got two quick groundball outs but then fell apart. Chase Utley singled. Ryan Howard walked. John Mayberry walked. Darin Ruf crushed a 2-0 fastball to right-center to clear the bases. Domonic Brown walked. By the time it finally ended, Gio had given up three runs on three hits and three walks, thrown 37 pitches (only 17 strikes) and put the Nats in a 3-1 hole.

7:45 p.m. -- And Michael Morse responds with a moonshot to left to lead off the top of the second. Guess his hand is doing OK, because he hit that ball 5 miles high for his 15th homer of the season. Nats now down 3-2 in what is already a wild game.

7:55 p.m. -- Another shaky inning for Gio. He didn't give up any more runs, but he did give up a pair of singles and got crossed up with Kurt Suzuki, leading to the always-awkward passed ball on a called strike. He's already thrown 55 pitches in only two innings.

8:09 p.m. -- Gio is starting to settle down now. He got through the top of the third on 11 pitches, though he did allow a one-out single to Ruf. He's at 66 total pitches, 35 of them strikes. The Nats still trail 3-2 as we head to the fourth.

8:19 p.m. -- Good news: The Nats have tied this game up 3-3 thanks to Ryan Zimmerman's leadoff double in the top of the fourth, Adam LaRoche's deep flyball to center and Morse's RBI grounder to short. Better news: The Braves trail the Marlins 2-0 in the 4th.

8:38 p.m. -- Just like that, the Nationals have the lead again. Harper delivers another clutch hit, a two-out, RBI single to left in the top of the fifth to put his team ahead 4-3. They might have added more, but Ryan Zimmerman was called out on an inside fastball to end the inning, then had some strong words for plate ump Mike Muchlinski. That's about as much emotion as you'll ever see from Zim directed toward an umpire. Meanwhile down in Atlanta, the Braves have stormed back and now lead the Marlins 4-2 in the fourth.

9:00 p.m. -- Sweet Fancy Moses! Michael Morse sent a two-run homer so deep to right-center, it landed in Tom Gorzelanny's hat. Yes, his hat. Which Gorzelanny was holding while standing in the visitors bullpen, which is situated BEHIND the home bullpen here. That's an absolute bomb to a place few have ever hit one in this park. And how about Gorzelanny's catch? Remarkable. The Nats lead 6-3 in the sixth.

9:13 p.m. -- What an impressive job by Gio Gonzalez tonight. After that awful first inning in which he surrendered three runs on 37 pitches, he tossed five scoreless innings on 69 pitches. He's done for the night, and while his final line doesn't look great, that was an impressive bounce-back performance in mid-start to put himself in line for his 21st win. Still 6-3 in the seventh.

9:31 p.m. -- Make it 7-3 as the Nats score a run on a strikeout. Yep, a strikeout (with a wild pitch attached). It's been that kind of night. Sean Burnett on for the bottom of the seventh. Morse's homer, by the way, was measured at 451 feet, his 2nd-longest of the year.

9:43 p.m. -- Meanwhile, the Braves now lead 6-3 in the eighth. They're seeking their 10th win in their last 12 games. In other words, the Nats won't be backing into a division title. They're going to have to win it themselves.

9:51 p.m. -- Top of the eighth. Nats holding a four-run lead. And here's Tyler Clippard.

10:01 p.m. -- How about that, a 1-2-3 inning from Clippard, who struck out two and got a popup for the third out. That was much needed, to say the least. The Braves, meanwhile, just won 6-2. They've won 10 of 12 and they're keeping the pressure on the Nats, who are three outs from lowering the magic number to 3. What that means, though, is that the earliest they can clinch now is Saturday night in St. Louis.

10:15 p.m. -- OK, here's Drew Storen, pitching with a 4-run lead in the ninth. The Nats need three outs.

10:20 p.m. -- That's it. The Nats win 7-4 for their 95th victory of the season. That matches the 1979 Expos for the franchise record. They lead the Braves by 4 games with 6 to play. The magic number is 3.

I never saw anything in Manny that made him a good manager. His strategy or handeling of the bull pen (yes I know it was crappy) was lacking IMO.

And that stoic - totem pole pose that he took during the game, almost never moving or saying anything really bugged me. The fact that he left the dug out only once that I can remember to argue with an ump or protect and stick up for his player was a real negative. I get his explanation that he was too argumentative in the minor years but he took not arguing to an extreem.

I don't think there will be multiple teams looking to hire him this time.

Manny had plenty of time, and not bad raw materials to work with. He might not be responsible for the Indians' collapse (two years in a row really), but someone has to take the fall for that kind of failure. I too don't miss him at all. The stoic demeanor, the excuses (remember Anderson Hernandez and the cut of the grass?), the devotion to mediocre players like Austin Kearns. All remnants of a past in Natstown that should be recalled only as a cautionary note.

Davey is a superior manager in every way you can think of, and I bet Bo will be too. At the very least, he's going to stick up for his players. Just ask Jamie Quirk.

That was a crappy team Manny had in DC. I too was frustrated with his apparent lack of passion but his explanation was that he didn't want to exhibit 'fake' anger which to me means that he really didn't get excited enough to throw a tantrum; they have the same criticism of him in Cleveland.

I agree with you; he's not getting a big league job any time soon. He will have to rebuild his reputation by having some successes in the minors.

"I suppose it's debatable whether anyone could have managed Milledge/Dukes/FLop/Anderson Hernandez/Meathook, et al., but Acta just let the inmates run the asylum. He was so bad he made Riggleman look good for about a year.

For that he deserves exile to the darkest corners of organized baseball. Maybe he can get Guillen's job in Miami. On second thought, I don't want to have to see him eighteen games a year."

I'll repost, too, seeing as how we're each entitled to our opinion, and to add a positive note on someone who just lost his job. I always liked Manny and wish him nothing but the best. Re. ejections, I recall Acta being tossed after his rookie pitcher was ejected from his first start. Who was that pitcher again? And who was the opposing team? Oh, yeah. Now I remember. :-)

i never actively disliked manny, but he never made me want him to stay, either. he was just... milquetoast... bland... boring.

i don't think the manager should be the center of attention, by any means, but i don't think he can be boring and uninspired/uninspiring, either.

one of the things that stands out about davey is that *EVERYONE* on the team plays hard for him. even as he came into the chaos of the riggleman mess.

i think it's possible to be quiet and stoic, to an extent, and be successful. but you can't be bland. that just doesn't work. nobody follows bland. or, at least, when they do, it just leads to mediocrity.

We seem to have problems with these unknown rookie pitchers. That's another annoying habit I would like to see broken. Man - Jayson got booed soooo bad last night. It was sweet to see him quiet the crowd, though. I actually thought I heard them booing their own pitchers, so I guess that is their in-game entertainment. Nice to see some nats fans there - hope they got out safely! That ninth inning ( top) , was extremely long and I don't think I have ever seen a pitcher draw things out quite that much. Hoping Gio is channeling his inner cy young tonight.And I hope the bats are alive right from the start again. Drew looked as sharp as I have ever seen him look. I love how his pitching is peaking right at the right time!!

Speaking of Nats fans at CBP, there were some folks right behind the Nats dugout who were making handmade signs during the game. At the very end of the broadcast, they held up a sign but the telecast didn't stay with them for long. It said something about "changing of the guard." Anyone know them, or see what the sign said?

I understand we're homers, but how can you possibly argue that Dickey doesn't deserve the Cy Young? He is equal to or better than almost everyone else in the league in almost every category, traditional and sabermetric.

And lest we forget, Dickey had to play with the terrible Mets defense behind him, and occasionally face the Washington Nationals. Gio got to play with the outstanding Nationals defense behind him, and occasionally face the putrid New York Mets.

Could tonight be Gio's last start before the playoffs? His next scheduled start would be Oct. 2, or Oct. 3 if Davey uses Wang against the Cards and wants to use all five other starters before going back to Gio. If he starts on Oct. 2, he's lined up to start again on Oct. 7, which would be Game 1 of the NLDS if we're the No. 1 seed. But if we're the No. 2 seed, Game 1 would be on Oct. 6. Surely Davey wouldn't want him to do short rest this early in the playoffs would he?

I can see Gio pitching on Oct. 2 if our magic number for clinching the No. 1 seed at that point is 1. But what if that Magic No. is 2, or 3? Ghost and NCNatsie, you guys are into rotation predictions, what do you think Davey will do? Gio is definitely the guy Davey wants starting Game 1, right? Or would he be ok with JZnn in Game 1 if we are playing the Giants out in SF?

I'd choose Dickey, GoSM. He's had a slightly better year, and I wonder if if would be more than just slightly better if he had the Nationals defense playing behind him instead of the Mets. Style points have nothing to do with it. And if it's "about winning," Dickey has a better winning percentage even though he plays for a far weaker team. Isn't that "winning"?

So their stats, as I view them are similar. Dickey has more innings - no arm stain to throw the way he does vs. Davey is over-cautious with our staff.Gio has a better batting average against and has given up way less homers.

Since they are a not appreciably different the award goes to the one whose pitching actually made a difference. That's the way the MVP goes when its between 2 players.

Could tonight be Gio's last start before the playoffs? His next scheduled start would be Oct. 2, or Oct. 3 if Davey uses Wang against the Cards and wants to use all five other starters before going back to Gio. If he starts on Oct. 2, he's lined up to start again on Oct. 7, which would be Game 1 of the NLDS if we're the No. 1 seed. But if we're the No. 2 seed, Game 1 would be on Oct. 6. Surely Davey wouldn't want him to do short rest this early in the playoffs would he?

Doubtful. But also probably wouldn't want him to sit around for 10 days either. I wouldn't be surprised to see him get another start, but limited to 3 or 4 innings, to keep him sharp but not tire him out.

You can't rest these starters too long ... they end up pitching less effectively as we've seen. One day one way or the other is probably okay but more than that?

Its different from resting a position player. A lot has to do with rhythm and the starter's cycle of bullpens and warms up for the main event. A lot of it is mental ... makes them creatures of habit.

Sure Davey is going to throw out Wang against the Cardinals. And Lannan gets another start against the Phillies to see if he can go more than five innings without getting into trouble.

Me? I like the idea floated of having Duke start the last game if Gio doesn't. He deserves it and a playoff berth. He did out pitch Lannan in Syracuse and unlike Lannan, he has show a propensity to be a very effective reliever to boot.

Thankfully, Davey will see it that way and Duke and not Lannan will be on the playoff roster.

However, it would be nice to find out what happened to put Tom Gorzelanny out of the picture? Is he injured or ... inquiring minds want to know ... certainly a top question for Beltway Baseball.

For alm and others, let me clarify: I don't think it's a no-brainer that Dickey should win the Cy Young. What I meant was that I didn't understand how other posters could criticize anyone in the media for taking the position that Dickey should win the Cy Young. He certainly has as good a case as anyone, maybe better. Because of that I think it's silly to suggest that, for example, my esteemed namesake is praising Dickey because of some anti-Nats agenda.

Ghost, it's close, but I'd probably take Dickey. His season has been astonishing, especially with the lousy team he has behind him. Leading the league in ERA (Gio is 6th), innings pitched (Gio not in top 10, complete games with 5, (Gio has 2), shutouts with 3 (Gio has 1), 3rd in WHIP (Gio is 6th). Gio leads the league in hits per 9 IP (Dickey is 3rd), wins (Dickey is 2nd), and is 2nd in Ks per 9 IP, to Strasburg (Dickey not in top 10). He's been very impressive, but Dickey more so in my opinion.

Actually, I'd probably take Medlen, the way he's been pitching, but that doesn't make him Cy Young worthy.

Feel that makes sense. So assuming that the seeding has been established, do you have Gio start on regular rest on Oct. 2 and just throw a few innings, and then send him out there on short rest on Oct. 6 if necessary? Or do you have him throw a few innings on short rest on Oct. 1, so he's fully rested on Oct. 6 if needed? Those seem to be the two choices.

And what if they need Gio to pitch full out to win the No. 1 seed? Or would Davey be just as happy with No. 2 and be more concerned with Gio being rested and ready on Oct. 6?

I think he wants Gio fully rested on Oct. 6 if needed, and will not go out to win the No. 1 seed, regardless of its advantages, but I'm not sure about this at all.

Kimbrel is a freak of nature. I watched his 4 K 9th inning on MLB.TV. That guy is pretty much unhittable. Did anyone ever consider making him starter?

Sofa, I know Davey has said that, but do you really think he's given no thought to how things line up? He wants to take this team all the way. And besides, aren't we here to think about the things Davey says he doesn't want to, so he can turn to the this blog for answers when the time comes? :-)

I think we are getting waaaay ahead of ourselves. Let's win a game here. How about four? I can't even remember the last time we won 2in a row.Could we start there? We cannot depend on the Braves losing at all - not with the way they are playing and not with the teams they are playing. And we are facing Philly and the Cardinals - you know, last years world series champs? All this talk about resting people and setting up rotations is a little bit premature. My fingers are firmly in my ears when such things about being talked about. Bad kharma.

You have got to read the SI.com article written by Drew's dad about drew as a little boy, a college pitcher, losing his grandparents and about how he as Drew's dad, felt watching drew clinch the wild card spot. I have a giant lump in my throat that won't go away. It's a fantastic article.

I just have an extra jolt for tonights game…not sure if its cuz of the werth incident, the chance to take 2/3 from phi on the road, separate from the braves, have Gio (hopefully!!) get #21, all the above, or something else..

JaneB raised an issue earlier that has probably been addressed on another thread, but it's one that intrigues me: should we really be trying for the best record? Second-best doesn't have to deal with that screwy first-two-games-away set-up (which scares the hell out of me). Why shouldn't we let Cincy deal with the wild-card winner while we play SF?

Bigfish -- if we're No. 2, we don't have to deal with the uncertainty of where we're going, but we do have to start the NLDS on the road. I'm for getting the No. 1 seed so when we face Cincy in the NLCS we'll have home field advantage. But Davey may actually prefer to plan and set up his rotation for the Giants. So either way is fine.

Swami -- Karma, Schwarma. We've been talking about the playoffs since late August. The Nats started selling tickets for playoff games at the beginning of the month. You're welcome to put your fingers in your ears, but the cat is way out of that bag. And anyway, we got this.

Dave - No strips here yet either. Supposedly they sent them this week. I'm going to place a call to my rep tomorrow just to be sure.

Finally, yes! Harper goes deep-- number 21. Just 4 more to be the greatest teenage homerun hitter in history. Holy crap!

Re the playoff strips: Mine already show up in MyNationalsTickets. Yours probably do too. That should allow you to transfer tickets electronically to partners so they can print at home. That will get them into the games. If they want the real ticket for commemorative purposes you can always give it to them after the fact.

What's weird is that my postseason strips aren't here, but the postseason tix i bought for my buddy's mom came probably a week ago. AND those seats are better than my STH seats for the same price. Grrrr.

Braves color commentator just went on a rant about how ALR doesn't deserve the comeback player of the year because he didn't come back from a "physical adversity". As compared to Medlen and Posey. Totally uninformed. And Strasburg doesn't deserve it because he didn't play the whole year. What an idiot.

Michele, I despised Dibble too. And I've learned things from FP too. And he's better than he was last year. I know it could be worse. (I know he's no Hawk Harrelson.) I'm just really tired of him acting like our guys are better than they are and making excuses for them. He doesn't treat his listeners as knowledgable baseball fans. Instead he acts like his job is to promote the Nats' players at all costs. As if what they accomplished this year doesn't speak for itself. Doesn't that bug you at all?

Morse never left ... still has 16 home runs in 98 games ... hitting between .290 and .300. A dangerous hitter if he gets hot for the playoffs. It might change folks' minds about facing Atlanta first ...

Peric.. since you are on I thought I would repost my question from earlier thread (and remember I am in the tank for Espi)

MicheleS said... Peric, you aren't the only person that reads Luke's stuff. And as I had stated, you have had Rendon slated for 3b, although to be fair, you have recently posted that he might go to 2b. And as a serious question, How do you have Rendon going to 2b when you have Espi as the player with the highest upside of anyone on the team? Where does Espi go if Rendon goes to 2b?

Sometimes Mikey Mo reminds me so much of Dave Kingman. Watched him hit bombs onto Waveland as a kid when he was with the Cubs

Dave Kingman ... boy you don't watch much baseball do you MichelleS? That guy was lucky to hit .200 every year! More like the recent incarnation of Adam Dunn. Morse is hitting in the .290's remember? How many of the starters are hitting that?

know you love you some ISO, and (before tonight) Morse's was 94 points lower this season than last.

Yup, injuries will do that. And MIkey Mo does seem to be a bit injury prone.

But, its still better than Jayson Werth #5 hitter. Davey Johnson could easily sit Morse and play Tyler Moore or Bernadina or even Rick Ankiel while he was still with the club. I don't see Davey benching him.

If Morse can avoid injury he's pretty damned good ... and even when he is he manages to hit close to .300 consistently. That's consistent offense.

Peric, The only problem with Espi hitting right handed is that he has done the switch hitting since he was 5, so that is almost 20 year that he has to erase. I don't see him going to the winter leagues to un learn that. That would make him a part time player and not a high upside player. Luke didn't sound to high on Espi when he reported the Rendon move to 2B.

Michele, even if you try to have an intelligent conversation with peric he will insult you. Some things never change.

Morse hasn't really been at full strength all year long. If tonight is an indication that he's getting over his various ailments that is great news for the playoffs. Bernadina has been a great member of the Goon Squad, but he's no Mickey Morse.

Nice recovery by Gio. Never would have predicted a quality start after the first two innings. Well done.

She has Natititude now. How did she come by this? Not b/c I have been to ooddles of games, not b/c she spent 52 years with a man that loved baseball. NOPE. Wolf Blitzer. She saw Wolf on CNN talking about the Nats and she had to call me all excited about DC baseball. I hope this translates into her wanting to go to games during spring training.

Michele, even if you try to have an intelligent conversation with peric he will insult you. Some things never change.

I did not that Luke has finally come around on Trevor Holder and Nate Karns ... I got trashed enough for stating my strong belief in the character of those two prospects. Even made fun of a few times here and on Nats Prospects ...

My vindication and revenge is ripe ... so of course I am going to feed trash talk to all the infidels.

222, I love FP too, but I know what you're saying. It just doesn't bother me when he does it. I attribute his constant tone of being so impressed to his own vow to himself to never forget how hard the game is.

MicheleS, when you mentioned Dave Kingman I knew that you meant the tape measure home runs that he crushed, and everybody knew Dave struck out a bunch. Your post certainly didn't deserve a snarky put down. I find your contributions to this board to be cheerfully refreshing.

222 Growing up in Chicago, I had to suffer Hawk, so unless someone is a total blowhard HOMER like that (my ears bleed), then I am okay with a little homerism. Being ornery is okay just means you are trying to keep him honest. And after reading some of his interviews FP does really try to work at getting better.

SO HI FP. 222 would like you to tone down the homerism a little, but most of us think it's okay

I never said that I would bench a healthy Morse, but if he isn't healthy, then his speed or lack thereof, becomes highly detrimental. I think he generally plays a decent left field, but Bernadina is most likely a better fielder.

Points about Morse vs Other Fielders is good thing. Morse hasn't been 100% this year, which may detract from both his hitting and his fielding. Hopefully he can be healthy for the next month, because his bat is sorely needed in this line up.

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About the Author

Mark Zuckerman has covered the Nationals since the franchise arrived in D.C. He's been a member of the Baseball Writers' Association of America since 2001 and is a Hall of Fame voter. Email mzuckerman@comcastsportsnet.com.